Knight Piésold as Lead Designer for Kiewit on Klamath River Dam Removal Design-Build
Knight Piésold as Lead Designer for Kiewit on Klamath River Dam Removal Design-Build

Knight Piésold as Lead Designer for Kiewit on Klamath River Dam Removal Design-Build

May 23, 2019, Denver, CO, USA – Knight Piésold is acting as lead designer for Kiewit Infrastructure West Co. (Kiewit) for the recently awarded dam removal design-build contract for the Klamath River Renewal Project. The Kiewit team, which also includes Resource Environmental Solutions as the lead for restoration design and construction, is working with the Klamath River Renewal Corporation (KRRC) to create a free-flowing Klamath River.

The Klamath River Renewal Project—the largest dam removal and river restoration project in U.S. history—involves the removal of the J.C. Boyle, Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, and Iron Gate dams. The four dams, located along Klamath River in southern Oregon and northern California, impound water for hydroelectric facilities with a combined capacity of 163 MW. The facilities include earthfill embankment and concrete gravity dams; a variety of intake, gate, and spillway types; a variety of water conveyance schemes including pipelines, tunnels, canals, and woodstave and steel penstocks; and powerhouses containing Francis-type turbines.

KRRC aims to remove these dams, thereby restoring volitional fish passage up and down the Klamath River, restore formerly inundated lands and channels, and implement required mitigation measures in compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations. “Once implemented, the project will help restore the vitality of the Klamath River so that it can support all communities in the basin,” said Mark Bransom, chief executive officer, KRRC.

KRRC, with AECOM of Oakland, California as technical representative, is using a progressive design-build delivery model, which allows for early collaboration and problem solving with the Kiewit team, to complete project design and execution in two phases. The initial preliminary services phase involves detailed design, permitting support, constructability and planning, reservoir drawdown preparation, and guaranteed maximum price development. The project implementation phase follows through on the plan and executes the removals and restoration. Pre-drawdown work involves dam modifications for reservoir drawdown, road and bridge access improvements for construction vehicle traffic, and bridge and culvert developments for new river and creek geometry.

“This project has many similarities to other complex water and hydroelectric projects we’ve delivered across North America,” said Jamie Wisenbaker, senior vice president, Kiewit. “We fully understand the breadth and importance of this undertaking and are excited and committed to safely delivering a high-quality project that meets the expectations of KRRC, the community and all key stakeholders in the region.”

Together with the Kiewit team, Knight Piésold is honored to be a part of a collaborative effort to help restore the Klamath River. “For those of us who dedicated our careers to designing and building dams, removing four dams on the Klamath River definitely requires a new paradigm,” said Paul Ridlen, president, Knight Piésold USA. “Knight Piésold is incredibly proud and excited to lead the design effort and to continue our successful history supporting Kiewit in hydropower and other heavy civil design-build projects.”

Visit the project’s website for more information and Kiewit’s website for subcontracting and employment opportunities.

Recent News

Dec 10, 2024
Knight Piésold, Strategic Partner in the Environmental Approval of the Los Azules Project
Nov 28, 2024
Knight Piésold Showcases Expertise at Tailings and Mine Waste 2024 Conference
Nov 25, 2024
Knight Piésold Botswana Recognized for Outstanding Performance with Diamond Arrow and Business Excellence Awards
Nov 20, 2024
Knight Piésold Peru Marks 30 Years of Engineering Excellence
Nov 15, 2024
Knight Piésold Sponsors ICOLD Short Courses on Slope Stability in Johannesburg, South Africa
Nov 14, 2024
Site C Clean Energy Project Reaches Major Milestones: Begins Generating Electricity and Completes Reservoir Filling
Nov 11, 2024
Knight Piésold Southern Africa Inspires Future Engineers at Job Shadow Day in Cape Town
Oct 18, 2024
Kevin Davenport of Knight Piésold Canada Presents Block Cave Mining Study at MassMin 2024
Oct 9, 2024
Knight Piésold Canada Specialists Address ARD/ML Challenges at ICARD 2024
Sep 16, 2024
Knight Piésold Southern Africa Honoured with Graduate Engineer and International Project Awards at 2024 SANRAL SAICE National Awards
Sep 13, 2024
Knight Piésold Southern Africa Triumphs with Renewable Energy Systems Design Excellence Award at 2024 CESA Aon Engineering Excellence Awards
Jul 23, 2024
Rubén Vargas of Knight Piésold Peru Shares Insights on GISTM Application in Peru at 2024 Tailings and Water Congress
Jul 3, 2024
Knight Piésold Southern Africa Adds Tracer Testing to Hydrogeology Expertise
Jun 28, 2024
Dr. Rami Abousleiman of Knight Piésold USA Introduces Conceptual Evaluation of Novel Rock Tower Felling Method at ARMA Golden 2024 Symposium
Jun 21, 2024
Giovanna Rosa of Knight Piésold Canada Presents Laboratory Study on Pavement Application of Mining Overburden at ISAP 2024 Conference
Jun 20, 2024
Knight Piésold RDC Receives Engineering Award for Hydropower Development at National Energy Conference
Jun 19, 2024
Camille Kraak of Knight Piésold South Africa Honoured as Fellow of the Geological Society of South Africa
Jun 13, 2024
Rubén Vargas of Knight Piésold Peru Delivers Tailings Management Keynote at British Embassy in Lima Event
Jun 11, 2024
Mark Bancroft of Knight Piésold Canada Presents Tailings Dam Creep Modelling at ITASCA Symposium
Jun 7, 2024
Patrick Kampengele and Kutlo Modie of Knight Piésold Southern Africa Shine at FIDIC Africa Infrastructure Conference